April and Ryan are Gettin' Hitched

I've put this off long enough.

Much to the consternation of our florist, Ryan's long-suffering mom Diane, and a seeming legion of wedding-goers, I've been deserately trying to avoid any bold statements about our "colors".

You know how it is. Most bridal types put on the mauve-colored glasses early, and leave them on. But I've just felt really reluctant to say anything.

Is this some sort of nascent commitment issue? Perish the thought! But how can I possibly get stuck on one scheme when there are sooooo many side issues? What if the dress I want can't be had in the color I pick? What happens when the cake decorator can't do Snow Cone Green? How can we know if the particular shade of tablecloth we've chosen sends my epileptic cousin into seizures?

But enough with the stalling. May it please you to know we seem to be leaning toward light blue and white, maybe with a little yellow thrown in for effect. Think summertime croquet party, only much, much funkier.

For more on what's informing my torment, check out the January New Yorker article on the color industry. The path to find it is a bit roundabout. Click this link, and then follow the hyperlink to download. I have no idea why the mag doesn't have it online yet.

I met yesterday's headline in the NYT Style section with a mixture of delight and dread: How Green Was My Wedding, an account of how couples can opt for more environmentally-friendly festivities.

Whitey, who is still extremely leery of any wedding plan that involves a shrubbery on his lapel, did not take this well. I honestly think the man loves the planet as much as anyone. He just wants the outdoors kept outdoors.

I am pleased to report we are making progress in the search for corporate sponsors to underwrite the pollution credit program for those of you flying in.

I'm writing a column about all this for The Oregonian. The second installment ran today.

By Ryan White

Regrettably, none of the books in Borders' wedding-planning section feature football players, motorcycles or Eddie Van Halen on their covers.

Instead, there are rows of pastels -- blue and pink and yellow. It's like looking at Don Johnson's "Miami Vice" wardrobe, minus the shoulder holster.

Since getting engaged in August, I've gotten one piece of advice over and over again: Stay out of the way. Which is hard. Clearly, I needed a book, and if a guy's going to buy one book about wedding planning, it might as well be the one with the testimonial from a supermodel.

See the full column after the jump: JUMP

Or read it at Oregonlive.com.

April here. I'm buckling down this week on the catering options. If you have a preference on what we're eating, how we're eating it, and various ovo-lacto-pesca-vegetarian options, now's the time to speak up!

We've seen some interesting variations on this lately.

Last summer our friends Caitlin & Rich did their reception at Gino's (a much beloved Southeast Portland Italian spot, for those of you back east). It was very tasty and elegant. (Alas, no sign of Louis Prima!)
As good as it was, I confess to wondering at the volume of Italian red wine flowing, and if the wedding party would have noticed if tin cans and dust bunnies had been served.... it was one of those incredibly happy nights.

Then there was Helen and Patrick's wedding. A very elegant affair at the Portland Art Museum. The Museum's preferred caterer is Salvador Molly's, an outfit known to the scurvy dogs of Portland's food scene as the home of "Pirate Cookin'". Despite this rather ominous tag-line, the food was extremely tasty Asian fusion. An easy contender for my top five best wedding meals.

But arrrrrrr matey--when the bill came! Given the Museum's strict rules, and H & P's short timeline for wedding planning, SM's "pirate" moniker turned out to be stunningly accurate.

Where's our middle ground?

It's tricky. We want everyone properly fed, but after all this IS happening in August. No one's going to be hankering for a big steaming plate of Beef Bourguinon when the weather is 87 degrees.

Columbus has some nice options, but for the first time, I find myself fantasizing about the possibilities had we done the wedding in Portland--massive bowls of etoufee from Montage! Or a chic little spread from Le Bouchon? Perhaps just a big convoy over to our favorite conveyor belt sushi place in the Pearl?

Back to reality.... I've got a few leads, including Steven's Catering (got rave reviews from Nan at the Bridal Expo), Polaris Grill, Made from Scratch, La Tavola. And I'm still not ruling out the barbecue. If anyone has intel on Basi Italia, or Z Cucina, email me, or post here.